Just hatching a plan to spend two or three nights at Glen Affric Youth Hostel and was thinking of cycling in from the Car Park at the eastern end of Loch Affric. Was thinking of taking a BOB trailer to carry kit and keep the weight off the back.
Anyone out there cycled the route recently and can comment on what the surface is like, how ride-able is it and would the BOB be more of a hindrance than a help?
Thanks
First part is very easy ( south side of the loch), second bit is rough and steep upand down after Athnamulloch. No reason why not but you probably will be walking bits of path after Athnamulloch
I was there a couple of weeks ago. As TJ says, expect to walk some short sections where the track is made of fist (and larger) sized boulders but the rest will be fine.
There's a charge for parking at the car park but it can only handle single days so I've no idea how they deal with multi-day stays.
Take a midge net and Smidge (though overnight temperatures have been dropping to freezing recently.
Mrs Chickenman & I rode in last year. There were complaints that the track on the south side of the loch had undulations and she abandoned her bike after the end of the loch. My the time we'd walked the three hills north of the hostel it was about midnight when we cycled back with only one working head torch. Cooked breakfast a Cannich campsite was like the elixir of the gods the next morning!
There’s a charge for parking at the car park but it can only handle single days so I’ve no idea how they deal with multi-day stays.
The couple of times I have encountered this I just bought a ticket for each day and wrote the day I expected to use them for on them.
Good if you know how long you are out for. There is free parking not far along the road towards Cannich.
Rode through Affric earlier this Summer. Easy from Alltbeithe, but the road is very soft with the gravel west of Strawberry Cottage. Lots of up and down.
I can tell you it’s a bastard push up out of Kintail if you decide to try it from the opposite direction... 🤣
i met a couple with bob trailers on the Fords of Avon side of Bynack More on the inner Cairngorm loop the other year, didn’t know whether to admire their grit and determination or laugh at the stupidity. In comparison Kintail YH would be a breeze.
I can tell you it’s a bastard push up out of Kintail if you decide to try it from the opposite direction…
Too right. We did Camban bothy from Ratagan 3 years ago.
Never.
Again.
But wev'e also done Camban from Cannich, (therefore passing Allthbeithe) & can't remember anything particularly difficult.
I can highly recommend not having a rock fly up, take off your mech, swing it round into your wheel, break 4-5 spokes buckling your wheel so it can't spin round without the tyre deflated and then walking 10km back to the car back having never made it to the hostel in the first place. Though if this does happen I can recommend Bikes of Inverness for repairs!